But aside from that, I agree. It's the best. No hangover (if it's pure), short duration, music sounds amazing, an amplified sense of intellectual focus and compassion, and good times with friends. You can't ask for anything more from an intoxicant. Its the best.
But that being said, unlike many drugs MDMA has a built-in cut-off switch (another perk) which basically prevents you from feeling anything more after about three doses. That's not saying that eager people wont continue to do more (especially if they're on other drugs or at a festival and not thinking clearly) but the effect is basically nil once you get into the 300mg range.
Also, I only heard about this right before I quit, but a lot of the toxicity can be averted by taking 20mg of fluoxetine 3 to 4 hours into the experience. (It diminishes the drug effect, so you don't want to take it too soon.) The theory I heard is that MDMA or, more likely, one of its metabolites, binds to serotonin receptors and damages them. Taking something else that binds to the receptors, then, can help protect them. I tried it once and it seemed to help. St. John's Wort might work too, and is easier to get.
All that said -- I agree that people should be more careful with it. It's a potent psychoactive drug that's harder on the body than most of them, dehydration being a real risk.
People regularly dosing with SSRIs may be safe from neurotoxicity, but they usually don’t feel the normal effects of MDMA either. The idea of using SSRIs to prevent neurotoxicity is something of a catch-22: If you take the SSRI after coming down from the MDMA, it’s probably too late to do a lot of good. On the other hand, taking an SSRI before-hand tends to reduce the desired effects of MDMA, making it more logical to simply take less MDMA in the first place.
All things considered, it’s unlikely that taking an SSRI before or after MDMA is a very useful prevention strategy. Since SSRIs have their own side effects and potential risks, the practice should probably be avoided.
source: http://www.dancesafe.org/drug-information/is-mdma-neurotoxic...
Severely depleted serotonin levels, causing irritability and possibly depression
Loss of focus, concentration, and attention (good luck programming competently the day after)
Bruxism (jaw clenching/grinding)
From a wide array of experience, pure MDMA (in recommended doses, meaning 200mg or less) produces less of a hangover than two beers, with a very real "afterglow" which lasts for days after. Excellent focus and concentration included.
This is a good read: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/pure-ecstasy-...
"The drug's letdown can include feelings of confusion, irritability, anxiety, paranoia and depression, and people may experience memory loss or sleep problems, jaundice or liver damage."
And:
"Dr. John Halpern, a Harvard Medical School assistant professor who led the research, said pure MDMA can change core body temperature, heart rate and blood pressure in the short-term, and decrease immune resistance for a few days."
Sounds like a hangover to me:
"2a : disagreeable physical effects following heavy consumption of alcohol or the use of drugs" http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hangover
I'm not saying MDMA is terrible for you, but it certainly does cause hangover effects (and of course, this will vary by person).
1: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15212815 2: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/1098-2396%2820010... 3: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10619665 4: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11931860
This happens when MDMA is cut with meth. I think he mentioned "pure", but when it's illegal it's hard to guarantee purity, so legalization would have at least that benefit.